Chapter 1

When Addiction Begins

First of all, addiction is NOT a disease. And the compulsion underlying the disorder is fueled by two dynamics: (1) a hypersensitivity to stress, and (2) a respondent overstimulation of the pleasure center in the brain. In that order. The hypersensitivity to stress is primary, and the respondent overstimulation of the meso-corticolimbic dopamine pathway is secondary. Consequently, the information in this book will explain, in detail, how the dysregulation of cortisol in the brain actually causes chemical dependency. And, the peer reviewed scientific evidence supporting that conclusion is irrefutable.

However, what has complicated the issue and impeded the discovery of a cure for addiction is the life span of the fallacy that alcoholism/addiction is a chronic disease. That incorrect diagnosis began with Alcoholics Anonymous in the 1930’s when it was proposed that alcoholism was the result of a “physical allergy” to alcohol (Wilson, 1939, p. xxviii). Eventually, the lack of scientific advancement advocated for the publication of“The Disease Concept of Alcoholism” by E. M. Jellinek in 1960. Today, we know for a fact that alcoholics are not suffering with a physical allergy to alcohol. So, why do treatment officials still recommend attendance at AA meetings? Good question.

And here’s one answer: Because attendance at AA meetings offer alcoholics an opportunity to open up anemotionalcatharsis through a derivative of Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic therapy called “Free Association” (Corey, 2009, p.75). The alcoholic is directed to participate in a process where he or she can freely associate themselves with others who will listen to the emotional issues which trouble them. So ironically, while insisting that chemical dependency is a chronic illness imposed by a compulsion to use chemicals, the treatment industry still recommends treatment for stress as a primary solution. They just never explain that rationale to you.

Another serious impediment to curing substance use disorders is that the treatment industry continues to regard chemical use as a primary determinant of addiction; which suggests that overcoming the disorder is influenced by moral attributes. That philosophical error is then underscored by research findings which identify the meso-cortico-limbic dopamine pathway (pleasure center) as the primary area of support for the reinforcing effects of opiates, psycho-stimulants, ethanol, nicotine, and cannabinoids; based upon the results of animal laboratory studies (Nestler& Self, 2004; Dworkin& Smith, 1993; Ikemoto& Wise, 2004; Koob et al., 1998; Kuhar et al. 1991; Olds, 1982). The meso-cortico-limbic dopamine pathway exists within the mesencephalon (midbrain), extending throughout the areas and functions of the substantia nigra (the source of most dopamine neuronal projections to the striatum of the basal ganglia), the ventral tegmentum, the nucleus accumbens, and the pre-frontal cortex (Pinel, 2011). These areas are also believed to be fundamental to the development of tolerance, sensitization, and dependence, relative to the etiology of chemical dependency (Nestler& Self, 2004).

However, although chemical dependency treatments have evolved and expan